COMMENTARY: Colin Powell Tells the Truth About the Republican Party

I appreciate Colin Powell’s bold comments about the racism that permeates the Republican Party – I only wish that Powell had decided to unleash his wrath on the GOP during last year’s presidential election.

But it’s better late than never – and Powell did the right thing by putting his party on notice.

“There’s also a dark vein of intolerance in some parts of the party,” Powell said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “What do I mean by that? What I mean by that is they still sort of look down on minorities.”

Powell, who enthusiastically endorsed Obama, said there were numerous comments by Republicans aimed at Obama that proves racism exists within the Republican Party. And it was clear that Powell has deep-rooted concerns about the GOP that have been bottled-up for quite some time.

“When I see a former governor say that the president is ‘shuckin’ and jivin’.’ That’s a racial-era slave term,” Powell said, referring to former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin who criticized Obama’s response to the attacks in Libya.

Powell also criticized former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu for calling Obama lazy.

“He didn’t say he was slow, he was tired, he didn’t do well; he said he was ‘lazy,’” Powell said “Now, it may not mean anything to most Americans, but to those of us who are African Americans, the second word is “shiftless,” and then there’s a third word that goes along with it.”

Powell was straightforward with his disapproval of how the Republican Party operates. It’s no secret that some Republicans have disdain for people of color and are not interested in embracing the ever-changing multicultural society.

Both the Latino and Asian populations have increased 43 percent respectively, according to The Center for American Progress. America is quickly getting more racially diverse as more people are identifying as multiracial, and 85 percent of population growth is people of color.